25th April , 2025
News desk
Primary school teachers and local government workers under the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) staged a protest in Abuja on Thursday, demanding the immediate implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage and other unpaid entitlements.
The demonstrators gathered outside the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister’s gate, holding placards with messages such as “Implement N70,000 minimum wage with arrears in the six area councils in Abuja now” and “Implement and pay arrears of our 40% peculiar allowance now.”
The protest was triggered by the failure of the six Area Council chairmen in the FCT to comply with the national minimum wage approved in July 2024. As of April 2025, 20 states — including Zamfara, Gombe, Kaduna, Imo, Ebonyi, Cross River, Borno, and the FCT — are yet to implement the wage adjustment.
Speaking to reporters, NUT Chairman Comrade Abdullahi Mohammed Shafas criticized the council chairmen for failing to act on a 4.1 billion naira disbursement meant to settle wage arrears.
“In December, we reached a resolution that the minimum wage would be implemented by January. They failed to deliver,” Shafas said. “They made promises for February, again nothing. The Minister even intervened with 4.1 billion naira, but the chairmen diverted the funds and abandoned their obligations.”
He stressed that the protest was to demand the release of seven months’ worth of outstanding payments to teachers and council workers.
Also speaking, Chairman of the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM-FCT), James Medan, voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating healthcare situation in the FCT. He revealed that Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) across the six Area Councils have remained closed for over a month, worsening maternal and child health outcomes.
“We have fewer than 130 nurses and midwives managing these facilities. Women and children are dying due to the prolonged shutdown,” Medan said, adding that critical allowances for nurses — including hazard and uniform allowances — remain unpaid despite the availability of funds.
Medan further warned that the closure of PHCs has disrupted a planned nationwide polio vaccination campaign, potentially exposing the region to preventable disease outbreaks.
Addressing the protesters on behalf of the FCT Minister, the Mandate Secretary of the FCT Education Secretariat, Hayyo Danlami, acknowledged their grievances and assured that their letter would be delivered to the Minister. He pledged that their concerns would receive prompt attention.
The demonstration drew support from members of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and other allied unions.
